


run to you

by renjunhuist



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:46:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24820288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/renjunhuist/pseuds/renjunhuist
Summary: wonwoo gets a pen pal in sixth grade. never in his wildest dreams did he think that his pen pal would come to mean so much to him.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Wen Jun Hui | Jun
Comments: 3
Kudos: 41
Collections: Wondrous Harmony





	run to you

The entire class’s attention is captured by the large man in front of them, who makes grand gestures with his hands as he speaks with pride in front of a photo of a classroom in Shenzhen, China. The man talks in loud, slightly accented Korean, his presence filling the room, letting excitement fester within the students. He walks around the classroom, handing each child a sealed envelope. When Wonwoo opens the envelope, a letter, a photo and a drawing fall onto the desk.

The photo is of a smiling boy in a dinosaur shirt, clutching a stuffed dinosaur of his own. His hair is blunt and spiky, and his smile is so wide Wonwoo can see crinkles near the boy’s eyes. The letter is written in orange coloured pencil, the blocky Hangul characters taking up two lines at a time. Wonwoo learns that the boy’s name is Moon Junhwi, and that Junhwi dreams of being a scientist at some point. He wants to find out how dinosaurs lived so he can bring one back to life in the future and have his own pet dinosaur. Wonwoo smiles at that. He looks at the drawing that Junhwi has made - a green dinosaur with orange spots, breathing fire into the air.

Wonwoo picks up a green pencil and begins to write. He talks about his favourite video game, Star Dash, a repetitive little game where you tap the screen to bounce the star up, up up to its family of stars. Wonwoo talks about how it allows him to pass the time doing nothing, which he does a lot of, considering he’s an only child. He asks about Junhwi, about his family, about what his parents do for a living. The teacher encourages them to put some extras in the letter, so Wonwoo goes to the classroom supply cabinet and tears out a page of dinosaur stickers from the sticker book. He folds up the letter and puts it into an envelope with Jun’s name on it. He seals the envelope with yet another dinosaur sticker, dropping it into the wire basket where all the letters are being collected.

Jun’s teacher addresses Wonwoo’s class once again, carefully organising the letters and sliding them into his shoulder bag. He tells the class that they can expect to get a reply within the month, and Wonwoo feels the excitement in the air as the children shift in their seats. Wonwoo’s class teacher tells them that this is Jun’s teacher’s last day with the class, so the children elect to use their free time drawing thank you cards for him.

About a month later, Wonwoo comes home to find a letter on the kitchen counter. It’s addressed to him, and written in familiar blocky Hangul. The size of Jun’s handwriting has reduced to where it fits between the lines this time, and improved considerably. He reads the letter, eyes crinkling into crescents as his smile grows wider with every line.

_Hello, Wonwoo!_

_I hope you are doing well. How is sixth grade? I think it’s fun, but my classes are getting harder. I like Korean class, though. I think it’s because I’m still at a basic level, so it’s more enjoyable than Chinese. I have to write long essays for that, and I don’t like that._

_My mother is an artist! She spends most of her time at home in her studio, so it’s nice that I have one parent at home. I don’t really know what my dad does. All I know is that it is something science-y and that he gets to travel a lot. I think travel is fun, so that’s a big reason I want to be a scientist. I have a little brother, but I don’t know how to write his name in Korean. He’s still a baby, though._

_Last week I joined a dance team! We dance about 20 hours a week. It’s pretty tiring, especially since I already do martial arts. I enjoy it, though! How about you? Do you do any activities outside of school? If you don’t, you should ask your parents! Since you’re an only child, I can imagine how lonely it feels (although it seems like a sort of blessing. My brother just wants to fight with me.) You should join a team for something!_

_Thank you for the dinosaur stickers! They’ve already gone on my wall. I ended up downloading Star Dash on my mother’s phone - it’s so addictive! I don’t know how to stop. I don’t have too much time to play though, or I’ll never get to do my homework. My mom wants to limit my screen time already._

_That’s it for now, I think. I hope you are doing well! Write to me soon :)_

_Jun_

Wonwoo sighs, looking around at his empty house. It feels cold, lifeless, with gray marble countertops and an overall gray theme in the furniture. His mom calls it minimal and modern, but “minimal” just seems to be another word for boring. He wonders what it would be like to have an artist in the house. To have meals cooked by his mom instead of reheated takeaway boxes for dinner.

Wonwoo goes into his father’s office, devoid of human presence as usual. He takes a stack of paper from the printer and pads up the stairs to his room, taking out his best pen set.

_Hello, Jun!_

_Your Korean is so good! Definitely better than a beginner, for sure._

_I’ve tried to get into extracurriculars! I did tennis for about two years, but I find it very boring. Part of that might just be because of where I did it- My mother didn’t like the school team very much, so she sent me to the country club to learn. It’s filled with the snobby children of rich people, and I don’t like them very much. It’s strange to hear you have to use your mother’s phone, though. I’ve had a phone of my own for the longest time, which should make it easier for me to make friends and talk to people. I prefer reading books, though. Books are rarely boring, and they don’t talk back._

_My parents are what you would call “socialites”. They never act like they’re working, and honestly, I think that half the reason they’re so rich is that they know how to talk. My mother is an interior designer, but she mainly works with hotels. You can kind of tell by looking at our house, it’s so clean and minimal that it just feels lonely. My dad is just never around, but he does real estate for super rich people. I think Nayoung-noona, my babysitter, spends more time in this house than my parents do. It’s kind of sad, but she’s the closest thing I have to a sister. She takes me to the convenience store every Friday so we get to split a lychee pop. Don’t tell my parents, though._

_Do lychee pops exist in China? They’re like little ice lollies on sticks, but there are two sticks so you can split them apart and share with a friend! They’re my favourite treat ever. Do you have any treats you have routinely? What’s your favourite snack? One time I went to Japan with my mom, and we tried takoyaki. I think it was the best thing I've ever had in my life. You should try it!_

_I thought of you earlier this week, and I bought you more stickers!! I even got some dinosaur washi tape. I hope you like it!_

_Talk to you soon,_

_Wonwoo._

Wonwoo gets a reply from Jun two months later, in which Jun talks about his favourite snacks and a new dance competition he’s participating in. Jun includes a little canvas painting done by his mother of a little orange cat. Wonwoo thinks the painting radiates the exact warmth he’s been missing out on, so he puts it on his bedside table, along with the picture of Jun. Wonwoo decides to make a little dinosaur during sewing class, and sends it to Jun in his next letter back.

Over time, Jun becomes a semi-permanent figure in Wonwoo’s mind. When Wonwoo goes to the grocery store to get his weekly lychee pops, he wonders what it would be like to share one with Jun instead of Nayoung-noona. He doesn’t tell her about that, though. She’s basically his big sister, and the source of all his privileges. Wonwoo forgot to tell Jun about Mingyu, though. He makes it a point to talk about Mingyu in his next letter. 

Jun writes back and tells Wonwoo about his best friends, a boy named Yanan and a girl named Yuqi. He talks about how they like to play instruments together, Jun on the piano, Yanan on the erhu, and Yuqi on the guzheng. Sometimes Jun’s cousin, Kyulkyung, joins in too. Jun talks about how she plays the pipa really well, and it makes Wonwoo want to play an instrument like that. Wonwoo talks about how he only plays the boring guitar, and that comes with the help of his friend, Joshua. Wonwoo talks about Mingyu, and how he’s the most unreliable star soccer player his school has ever seen.

Jun and Wonwoo fall into their routine of correspondence every two months until Jun gets a cell phone in eighth grade, where the correspondence goes from every two months to every two hours. Nayoung-noona jokingly threatens to take Wonwoo’s phone away, asking him about the secret girlfriend he’s hiding. Wonwoo laughs at her and the thought of having a girlfriend. She couldn’t be further from the truth.

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:06 AM**

**hey, i just thought of something**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:08 AM**

**well, don’t just leave me hanging**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:09 AM**

**have some patience, wonwoo**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:09 AM**

**never <3**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:09 AM**

**you’re so stubborn**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:10 AM**

**i call it persistent**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:11 AM**

**whatever. anyway, does your school have streams?**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:11 AM**

**do we what now**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:12 AM**

**do you have streams**

**like, career paths that you choose**

**we have three main streams - art, science, and business**

**you can also choose your own but that is highly discouraged**

**but i did it anyway**

**dance stream here i come**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:14 AM**

**sounds neat**

**oh look its pi time**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:14 am**

**i know 3:14 is pi time**

**but in the morning?**

**wonwoo, you’re making me hungry**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:17 AM**

**any time is a good time to eat.**

**and no, we don’t have streams like those, but i go to a private school so that doesn’t really follow the standard korean system**

**i decided to join the track and field team though**

**partly because of you lol**

**i also bribed mingyu to join so i could get good snacks from him**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:19 am**

**don’t tell me you steal snacks from his bento box**

**his poor mom |: <**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:21 AM**

**oh no he makes them himself**

**i’m his chosen test subject**

**whether his creations are good or bad, i have to have them all**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:24 am**

**well that sounds nice**

**do you notice how our messages are getting spaced further and further apart**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:26 AM**

**yeah**

**are you getting tired?**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:28 am**

**yes**

**i hope you are too, you should sleep**

**to: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:26 AM**

**maybe i will**

**good night**

**from: baby dinosaur, thursday, 3:30 am**

**good night, wonwoo!**

\---

In ninth grade, a new boy arrives at Wonwoo’s school. Word gets out that the boy has moved from China, and a part of Wonwoo hopes that the boy might be Jun. His hopes are shattered, though, when Mingyu introduces him to Seo Myungho, with inky black hair and large, round glasses. Myungho, who prefers to be called Minghao is small and wiry, a stark contrast to Mingyu, the gentle giant. Minghao emanates an aura of innocence and warmth, and quickly becomes part of Wonwoo’s inner circle.

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 7:54 PM**

**hey**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:47 PM**

**hello!!**

**how are you???**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:51 PM**

**could be better**

**i hung out with mingyu and minghao after track practice today**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:53 PM**

**minghao?**

**who’s that?**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:56 PM**

**a new boy at school**

**he’s from china, too**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:58 PM**

**fun!! does he do track, too?**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 8:59 PM**

**nope**

**or at least, not yet**

**gyu and i are trying to convert him to the track life**

**but he’s a dancer**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:00 PM**

**i have found my person!!**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:01 PM**

**even better**

**he knows wushu, too**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:01 PM**

**maybe he should be my best friend**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:02 PM**

**instead of me?**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:02 PM**

**along with you, silly**

**i have yet to meet your friends**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:02 PM**

**i have yet to meet yours, too**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:03 PM**

**touche**

**but we’re all just arts students**

**my school’s fine arts department decided to split into a whole different school**

**so now i go to the carat school for the arts**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:05 PM**

**that sounds better than the pledis school for dumb rich kids**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:06 PM**

**don’t you have mingyu and minghao?**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:07 PM**

**they are the only exception**

**remember when you wanted to be a scientist?**

**and i wanted to be a designer**

**a video game designer**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:08 PM**

**how ironic**

**we’ve done a complete 180**

**what are you doing science for, anyway?**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:08 PM**

**i wish i knew**

**my parents don’t want me to be broke if i were to pursue a creative field**

**ironic coming from the interior designer who is clearly not broke**

**but i can’t fight them :/**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:10 PM**

**i wish i could**

**and i might actually be able to!**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:12 PM**

**you what now**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:13 PM**

**i might actually be able to come!**

**i’m doing an audition for an entertainment company in changwon**

**my whole dance team is, actually**

**we’re coming to your backyard :)**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:14 PM**

**that**

**that’s awesome**

**have you planned out where you’re staying? could you maybe stay with me instead?**

**my house is empty save for an occasional visit from hao and gyu**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:16 PM**

**i actually didn’t think of that**

**but now i’m really excited**

**i’ll ask about it**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:18 PM**

**yeah!!**

**when are you coming?**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:19 PM**

**around winter break i think! you’ll be free then, right?**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:20 PM**

**yes of course**

**and you can finally meet my friends**

**they’re a lot but you’ll love them**

**from: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:21 PM**

**i’m sure i will**

**this is so exciting!!**

**oh also my mother is summoning me for dinner so i must go good night!!!**

**to: baby dinosaur, tuesday, 9:22 PM**

**eat well!**

**\---**

In the months counting down to Jun’s arrival, Wonwoo learns that the Pledis School’s varsity track team is entering in the National Track Tournament. Being the only senior on the team, Wonwoo is automatically signed up for the 400m relay, along with Mingyu, Minghao and a junior named Seokmin. In preparation, Wonwoo’s track practice gets kicked up to four hours every day after school, which leads to his text exchanges with Jun being increasingly scarce.

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:22 AM**

**goooood morning**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:23 AM**

**jeon wonwoo**

**what unholy hour is this**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:23 AM**

**simply the best hour of the day**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:24 AM**

**i was about to sleep but apparently not anymore**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:24 AM**

**i have news for you!!**

**my track team is apparently somewhat successful?**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:25 AM**

**well yes, but you go to private school so i’m not that surprised**

**rich people = resources**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:26 AM**

**shush**

**i’m not even that rich**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:27 AM**

**i beg to differ**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:27 AM**

**your begging is irrelevant**

**anyways!!**

**i have exciting news**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:28 AM**

**i am waiting**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:28 AM**

**you’re so enthusiastic <3**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:29 AM**

**what else would you expect from your personal cheerleader**

**well get on with it**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:29 AM**

**i’m going to be on television**

**international television**

**in february**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:30 AM**

**what?!**

**wonwoo that’s amazing!!**

**where can i watch it?**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:30 AM**

**good question**

**i don’t know**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:31 AM**

**wow**

**what a surprise**

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:31 AM**

**it’ll probably be on a sport channel**

**it’s for track, anyway**

**you better watch it**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 2:32 AM**

**i’ll make sure of it <3**

**\---**

Towards the end of December, Wonwoo and his team fall into a routine of stopping by the convenience store after practice to indulge in instant ramen. There, the four boys part ways, each walking to their respective homes. When Wonwoo gets home, however, he arrives to find a boy with honey-brown hair sitting on his doorstep. When the boy notices Wonwoo approaching, his face lights up in recognition.

“There you are!” he exclaims, standing up to reveal a lychee pop he had behind his back. The boy unwraps the pop and splits it in two, offering the second stick to Wonwoo. “It may not be a Friday, but I thought you’d enjoy this nonetheless.” 

Wonwoo stares at the boy. “I can’t believe it’s actually you.”

Jun lets out a radiant smile, brighter than anything Wonwoo’s ever seen before. “Is this how you greet me when seeing me in person for the first time? Can’t even accept the lychee pop I have so generously purchased for you? So ungrateful, Wonwoo.”

Wonwoo laughs, dropping his track duffel on the grass and taking Jun by the hand, leading him onto the porch behind the house. Wonwoo lets go of Jun’s hand, observing Jun’s smiling face. “I had so many things I wanted to say to you, but now that I actually can, they all seem irrelevant.”

“That’s okay,” Jun says. “We can improvise.”

They sit on the porch, lychee pops in hand, gazing at the passing clouds. Wonwoo invites Jun into the house, letting Jun see his room in person for the first time. They decide to walk to the convenience store to meet with Mingyu and Minghao, and walk around the park. Minghao and Jun seem to hit it off immediately, bonding over their shared nostalgia and love of spicy food. Mingyu intimidates Jun at first, but Jun soon warms up to him when Mingyu suggests visiting the local animal shelter.

When the day fades into its waning hours, the four boys part ways. Wonwoo sets up the guest room for Jun to stay in, taking the dust cover off the guest bed. Jun offers to help, so Wonwoo directs him to the blanket closet, telling Jun to help himself to whatever blanket sees fit. Wonwoo continues to arrange the bed when he hears a soft thud from Jun’s direction. “Jun?” he calls. When he receives no response, he goes out to investigate. Upon reaching the blanket closet, Wonwoo spots Jun, trapped under a blanket fort of sorts. “For someone who claims to have trained in martial arts for years,” Wonwoo laughs, “my blankets seem to be quite the enemy.”

“Shut up and help me out of here!” Jun tries to scold, but his voice is muffled under the blankets. Wonwoo takes the opportunity to laugh at Jun’s plight once more before helping him out of the blanket pile. They decide to create an actual blanket fort and fall asleep in the fort with a cheesy romance movie playing in the background.

When the time comes for Jun to return to China, Wonwoo, Mingyu and Minghao pile into Minghao’s tiny blue convertible to take Jun to the airport. Mingyu, Minghao and Jun exchange numbers, while Mingyu forces Jun to promise to visit again. Mingyu and Minghao give Jun a bento box as a parting gift, filled with snacks that would never make it past security. Wonwoo is the last to say goodbye to Jun, but before Jun goes into the airport, Wonwoo pulls two gold strings out of his pocket.

“Think of them as friendship bracelets, but simple,” Wonwoo says, giving one to Jun. He ties the other around Jun’s wrist and extends his own for Jun to tie his string around. “We’ll be together forever.”

“Together forever,” Jun smiles. “We’ll make sure of it.”

\--- 

With the end of winter break, Wonwoo’s life falls back into a steady rhythm of school, track and sleep. His nightly talks with Jun start to dwindle, until they stop completely.

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 6:54 AM**

**good morning wonwoo <3**

**how are you?**

**from: baby dinosaur, sunday, 4:27 PM**

**wonwoo!! how has practice been? is this a rest day?**

**are you taking care of yourself well?**

**make sure to rest well!**

**from: baby dinosaur, wednesday, 11:44 PM**

**wonwoo? are you there?**

Wonwoo sits in his room, phone facing up on the bedside table. He hears the familiar chime of an incoming message, he _knows_ it’s Jun, but he can’t bring himself to open it. Not just yet.

\---

Wonwoo throws himself into practice, and Mingyu and Minghao are worried.

“Don’t you think you’re overexerting yourself?” Minghao asks, as Wonwoo completes his 17th lap that hour. “You’ll faint of heat stroke.”

Wonwoo looks at Minghao like he’s about to retort, but Mingyu cuts him off. “You’re taking a break. You need one.” 

“One more lap,” Wonwoo says. “One more lap, and that’s it for the day.”

Minghao wants to protest, but sighs. “Okay,” he starts, “One lap. And that better be it.”

Wonwoo smiles. “Just one.”

But when Wonwoo starts running, he immediately knows something’s wrong. He debates stopping and walking back to where Mingyu and Minghao are stretching, but he doesn’t get very far before he finds himself plummeting face first into the track.

\---

“What did I tell you?”

“Not to overexert myself.”

“And what did you do?”

“Exactly what you told me not to do,” Wonwoo sighs, “But at least-”

“No buts,” Mingyu cuts him off. “We told you to be careful. You weren’t.”

“We have a week till the tournament, Wonwoo. Nobody can do this but you. But to even get there, we need you alive and in good health,” Minghao adds. “You’re staying here for three days. No leaving bed rest.”

“Three days? A week before the tournament? I need to practice, and both of you know it.”

“You’ve practiced enough to make up for all three of us,” Minghao says, “The last thing you need is to exhaust yourself further. You’re resting now.”

Wonwoo sighs, leaning back into the bed, and stares at the ceiling. The ceiling is speckled with glow-in-the-dark stars that Mingyu impulsively purchased in eighth grade, when the two of them tried to create their own galaxy. Wonwoo thinks escaping into a new world would be pretty nice right about now, especially one in which he could actually move. On the bedside table, Wonwoo’s phone lights up, only to be intercepted by Mingyu. Mingyu looks at the notification and frowns.

“It’s Jun. You’ve been ignoring him, haven’t you?”

“I haven’t been ignoring him, it’s just-”

“Just what?” Mingyu snaps. “What is it, Wonwoo? You have the ability to make time for your friends but you throw yourself into track instead. You’re slowly isolating yourself from everyone around you, and look what you’re doing to him! His best friend hasn’t spoken to him in over a week and he doesn’t know why! You owe him an explanation, at the very least.”

From the look on Minghao’s face, Wonwoo can tell that he’s not the only one surprised by Mingyu’s outburst. Then again, Mingyu isn’t entirely wrong - although Wonwoo would rather not admit it. “I’ll talk to him again,” he says. “All I’m asking for is some time. I don’t really know how to approach him at this point.”

Minghao sighs. “I only hope your definition of ‘some’ time isn’t too much time.”

\---

**to: baby dinosaur, monday, 4:23 PM**

**jun**

**i’m so sorry**

**from: baby dinosaur, mon, 4:24 PM**

**wonwoo!!**

**it’s okay it’s okay**

**i was just scared that something had happened to you**

**to: baby dinosaur, monday, 4:25 PM**

**not at all!**

**i’m just a little overwhelmed**

**you’ll be watching me though, right? only four more days to go ;-;**

**from: baby dinosaur, mon, 4:24 PM**

**i’ll always be watching!!**

**i’m rooting for you!!**

**\---**

It’s race day, and the Pledis Track and Field team are all present at Nationals - all except for Seokmin.

“He can’t make it,” Minghao whispers. “What the hell are we going to do now?”

Wonwoo’s coach suggests that since Seokmin was the last on the relay, it would be easiest for Wonwoo, who started the relay, to complete the first leg and walk back for the last one. Mingyu hesitates at the idea, seemingly ready to object, but Minghao gives him a swift elbow in the ribs to shut him up. The coach gives his final words to the trio before they prepare to head into position on the track.

**to: baby dinosaur, friday, 10:30 AM**

**are you watching?**

**from: baby dinosaur, friday, 10:30 AM**

**always.**

  
  


Wonwoo steps into position on the track, bracing his legs and focusing his eyes on the track. He revels in the thought of his last ever track tournament, waiting for the host to shoot another blank in the air, the last one he’ll hear in a while. The atmosphere is electric - cameras being wheeled along the turf, screaming teenagers on the bleachers - Wonwoo thinks he might end up missing it.

The host sets off the blank and all Wonwoo can think is _go, go, go_ \- clutching the golden baton with a death grip as he sprints the first quarter. He gains a significant lead on the other contestants, shoving the batin into Mingyu’s hands long before anyone else has managed to pass the first baton. Wonwoo starts to run back to the end of the third quarter, where Minghao will pass the baton back to Wonwoo so he can finish the last quarter. But as he heads back, he sees Seokmin running from the sidelines and into his original position, waiting for Minghao to pass the baton. Wonwoo lets out a sigh of relief, continuing his walk up to the finish line. Yet as Seokmin comes closer, Wonwoo can sense something that isn’t quite right. He’d like to blame it on the heat exhaustion, but something in Wonwoo’s mind tells him that it isn’t Seokmin running towards him. No, the boy running down the final stretch is his very own Wen Junhui, pale hands practically white from his grip on the baton. Junhui sprints across the finish line and collapses into Wonwoo’s arms, securing first place.

Wonwoo and Jun lay on the ground, struggling to catch their breath. “Tell me this isn’t real,” Wonwoo whispers. “This has to be some fever dream. Tell me you did not come running into the track during nationals. There’s no way you’re here.”

Junhui laughs, an ethereal sound that Wonwoo wants to keep in his memories forever. “I’m real, Wonwoo. Most definitely real. And yes, I did run,” he smiles. “I ran to you.”

**Author's Note:**

> fun fact: all the timestamps in the texts between wonhui reflect the actual time it was when i wrote them. quarantine has me feeling nocturnal at this point. i really hope you enjoyed this!! you can find me on twitter at @mooncakejun, and i'll be putting out more work soon :)


End file.
